National publications, economists and university researchers recognize Northwest Arkansas as one of the nation’s most successful regions. They are consistent with their praise of Northwest Arkansas, its counties and cities, its economy and businesses, and its quality of life. It's worth saying many publications and researchers' lists show the city of Fayetteville as the place that's being ranked, but the statistics used to determine the rankings make clear that the ranking is based on the success of the Northwest Arkansas metropolitan statistical area (the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers MSA) rather than any one city. Here are some examples of the praise that's been heaped on Northwest Arkansas, its individual cities and its schools.

REgional rankings

Best cities to launch a career

Realtor.com in mid-2017 created a list of the 10 Best Cities to Launch a Career. Northwest Arkansas joined far larger middle America regions on the list, including Dallas, Kansas City and Nashville. Among the places listed, only Kansas City had a lower median home price.

Best-Performing Cities

The Milken Institute, which published a new report in January 2018, put the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area's economy at No. 25 among large metropolitan areas. The region was especially strong in job growth.

Best Places to Live

U.S. News & World Report put the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers (Northwest Arkansas) Metropolitan Statistical Area at No. 5 on its 2018 list of Best Places to Live. Northwest Arkansas has stayed in the Top 5 for three years in a row.

Best Places for Minority-Owned Businesses in 2016

Only San Jose in California ranked ahead of Northwest Arkansas when it came to creating a climate for minority-owned businesses. Northwest Arkansas was No. 2 nationally, according to Fast Company and Nerdwallet.

Best Places to Retire

Money Magazine in 2015 lists Northwest Arkansas as one of 25 Best Places to Retire. Northwest Arkansas offers a wealth of year-round outdoor outlets.

Best Suburb to Purchase a Home

According to Realtor Magazine's June 2015 issue, Centerton in Northwest Arkansas was ranked by online publication Niche at No. 3 for best places in the nation to purchase a home with an average home price of $133,400. Niche recently ranked America's suburbs, factoring in home values, property taxes, housing costs, and age of new homebuyers.

Family Friendliness

Researchers at Chapman University's Center for Demographics and Policy in California determined in a report that Northwest Arkansas ranked No. 1 in the nation in family friendliness. The report, called Building Cities for People and made public in January 2016, measured metropolitan areas in such categories as commute times, housing costs, income and migration.

Fastest-Growing Economy through 2021

The Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area (Northwest Arkansas) economy, according to a report by IHS Global Insight for the U.S. Conference of Mayors. The report showed the region's economic growth rate will rank No. 5 nationally through 2021. Only four U.S. regions — two in Utah and two in Florida — are expected to see their economies grow at a faster rate. The 3.9 percent annual growth rate predicted for Northwest Arkansas will push the region’s economy past $30 billion. The report is available here, and Page 36 shows the expectation regarding Northwest Arkansas' future growth.

Most Economic Growth in 2016

Northwest Arkansas is No. 7 among 18 regions that will see the most economic growth in 2016, according to research by the U.S. Conference of Mayors in June 2015.

CITY RANKINGS

Bella Vista

The city on the northern end of the Northwest Arkansas region was selected as one of the nation's 25 Best Places to Retire in 2017 by Forbes. The affordability of housing was a significant factor in the ranking.

Bentonville

NerdWallet put Bentonville at No. 9 on its list of Best Small Cities for Families, publishing the list in October 2017. The online publication ranked cities with populations between 25,000 and 75,000 residents. Bentonville was the only Top 10 city that isn't a suburb to one of the nation's largest metropolitan areas.

Jetsetter put Bentonville in its list of America's Coolest Southern Towns, describing three of trhe city's best attributes: Crystal Bridges, 21c Museum Hotel and The Hive, an outstanding restaurant inside the hotel. The list was published in September 2017.

National Geographic in May 2017 selected Bentonville as one of America's 20 Best Mountain Bike Towns. Mountain bike trails at Slaughter Pen in Bentonville, Lake Atalanta in Rogers and Mount Kessler in Fayetteville were mentioned as part of the recognition on National Geographic's website.

Fayetteville

Money magazine put Fayetteville and three other Northwest Arkansas cities in the Top 70 in its September 2017 ranking of Best Places to Live. Fayetteville led the way at No. 43, but Rogers (No. 45), Springdale (No. 58) and Siloam Springs (No. 68) were each ranked, too. The ranking was for cities with 10,000 to 100,000 residents.

The University of Arkansas System, which has the flagship University of Arkansas located in Fayetteville, was ranked at No. 65 in a list of the world's 100 top utility patent producing universities. The list was published in June 2015 by the National Academy of Investors.

Ranked by Southern Living at No. 11 in its list of The South’s Best College Towns, Fayetteville was cited for “a slew of music venues and bars” but also noted that Dickson Street is the “town’s life force on the weekends” and connects the University of Arkansas to “the revitalized downtown, where streets are blocked off on Saturdays for the 60-stall Fayetteville Farmers’ Market.”

Springdale sits at No. 45 on a list of America's 50 Best Cities to Live as ranked by 24/7 Wall St. The website evaluated 590 cities with populations over 65,000 residents. Data was collected in nine categories, including crime, health, housing and infrastructure.

EDUCATION RANKINGS

preLaw Magazine

The National Jurist and preLaw magazines ranked the University of Arkansas School of Law as the nation's No. 7 "Best Value in Legal Education" in 2017. The law school is often ranked among the nation's best in terms of cost. It's the fifth consecutive year that the university's law school has ranked in the Top 10.

The National Jurist and preLaw magazines in their Winter 2018 issues ranked the University of Arkansas School of Law No. 16 in the Public Defender/Prosecutor list of its “Best Schools for Public Service.”